The Boy on the Shed by Paul Ferris Hodder £20Ferris’s wonderful memoir represents a twin triumph. He has endured every kind of setback in life but has invariably reinvented himself; and his writing is a pure pleasure. A Catholic brought up on a Protestant council estate in Northern Ireland, he had his outlook shaped by four cornerstones: his mother’s heart disease; the Troubles; the Catholic Church; and football, his means of escape. A prodigy, Ferris played for Newcastle United at 16, but injuries terminated his career. He became a physiotherapist, a barrister and a businessman before suffering a heart attack himself. Undaunted, he still considers himself a fortunate man.

The Test: A Novel by Nathan Leamon Constable £16.99The author…

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